International Women’s Day 2018: Beyond #MeToo, With Pride, Protests and Pressure

Representatives of a project called 100 Women against Stereotypes met in Rome to promote an online platform that sponsors female experts in a variety of areas.

And after being held inside Vatican City for years, the Voices of Faith conference, which champions women’s leadership in the global Catholic community, moved to the headquarters of the Jesuit order. The venue was moved after the Vatican expressed disapproval of the choice of three speakers on the schedule, including a former president of Ireland, Mary McAleese, who has championed women’s ordination.

As thousands of students marched in Milan on Thursday morning, one group broke off to chant slogans in front of a hospital, protesting the majority of Italian doctors who refuse to perform abortions, even though it is legal.

In Rome, the actress Asia Argento, who has received criticism in Italy for accusing Harvey Weinstein of sexual assault, was among the women who marched.

Defying Duterte in Manila

In the Philippine capital, women took to the streets and denounced President Rodrigo Duterte as among the worst violators of women’s rights in Asia.

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Hundreds of activists sang and danced in a boisterous rally in Plaza Miranda, in central Manila, while handing red and white roses to the mothers, sisters and widows of those suspected of drug offenses who have been slain under Mr. Duterte’s brutal crackdown.

The protesters noted the thousands of people they say have died in extrajudicial killings — accusations the police have denied. One protest leader, Jean Enriquez, condemned Mr. Duterte’s remarks against women, including one in which he asked troops to shoot female communist rebels in the genitals.

“We’re so alarmed,” she said, according to The Associated Press. “We have seen his direct attacks on women under his iron-hand rule, and it’s now time to heighten our resistance.”